Kyle Leia Heyesen, MSW, E-RYT 500, YACEP

Kyle is the founder of Svälja Yoga and Lead Teacher at the House of the Gathering Yoga School (HGYS). Her specialty within the HGYS Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) is Trauma-Conscious Yoga. She is an Experienced-Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT 500) and a certified Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Provider (YACEP). 

Additionally, she holds a Master of Social Work (MSW) and has worked in the social work field for over 20 years. She currently works full-time at St. Louis County Public Health & Human Services (PHHS) as the supervisor of the Planning Resource & Organization Development (PROD) unit.

Kyle is deeply committed to diversity and inclusion and is the co-chair of the PHHS Diversity Action Team (DAT) and member of the state Equity Partnership. She is a fierce ally to Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC), and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) people. She actively works to address her own privilege and bias and dismantle systems of oppression. She has worked with various populations impacted by trauma including battered women and their children, sexual assault survivors, abused and neglected children, people with disabilities, and adults and children with mental illness and Substance Use Disorder.

Kyle began teaching yoga in 2002. She has two 200-hour teacher training certifications. The first, from Sun Moon Studios in Mankato, MN, which focused on a variety of traditions, including Ashtanga, Vinyasa, Yin Yoga, Kundalini and Hatha, and focused heavily on the asana component of yoga. The second, was at Yoga North in Duluth, which followed the Himalayan Tradition of Hatha Yoga and was rich in yogic philosophy. She obtained her 300-hour teacher training certificate from Yess Yoga in Minneapolis in the spring of 2021 and over 2020-22 underwent over 100 hours of in-depth Yin Yoga training with Bernie Clark, Yess Yoga, and Miriam Hanson’s 30 hour Yin Certificate offered at Svälja. Kyle is passionate about learning and has taken many workshops, including with world renowned teachers David Swensen of Ashtanga, and Desiree Rumbaugh of Anusara.

Kyle is a trauma survivor and personally knows the devastating impacts and outcomes of trauma. She is a living testimony to the fact that we can transform trauma and stress in order to rise from the ashes and use our unique experiences and gifts to make a difference in the world. She indicates that yoga saved her life and is a powerful pathway to healing and growth. She she grew up with parents who struggled with Substance Use Disorder (now in long-term recovery) and lost her sister to a drug overdose in 2017. She is passionate about advocating for recovery, knows we can do better to save lives, and as a result is the Board Chair of Recovery Alliance Duluth (RAD).

Kyle has training in trauma-informed yoga from Firefly Yoga International and the Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY). She has further training in Mindfulness Based Stressed Reduction (MBSR) and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TFCBT), and various social work oriented trauma-informed practice approaches including the 40 hour train-the-trainer certificate for Trauma-Informed Criminal Justice Systems. Kyle has taught at Yoga North, the Duluth Area YMCA, UMD Psychology Department, the Center for Alcohol and Drug Treatment, the Human Development Center Children’s Therapeutic Services and Supports (CTSS) program, the Program for Aid to Victims of Sexual Assault (PAVSA), the Center for American Indian Resources (CAIR), Yoga for Runners at the Duluth Running Company, Yoga for Kids, and a variety of open classes in the community. Additionally, in 2017 she partnered with the Honorable Judge Floerke of the 6th Judicial DWI Court to develop and implement a trauma conscious yoga and mindfulness program in treatment courts and has co-presented with him at the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) annual conference. 

She is a lover of writing and published poet of the book Grace Intoxicated. She weaves poetry into her yoga classes as a way to open consciousness and connect individuals with something greater than themselves. She knows yoga and poetry can be instrumental in healing and transformation. She believes in humanity and our ability to know & love ourselves more deeply in order heal, connect with and love others profoundly, and make a positive difference in this world.